Choosing the right Microsoft 365 (M365) license can feel daunting! It doesn’t have to be! Choosing the right plan depends on your specific business needs, along with the features and capabilities you are looking for. To help you choose the right license, consider these factors: 

 User Roles and Needs  

What roles do your employees have? What do they need in order to complete their work? How will or do they collaborate with other teams. Does your traveling sales person actually need desktop applications? But Teams may be a requirements for collaboration? Does your organization have compliance and data policies to follow? Once you can define the users roles and needs, choose their licenses is much clearer. As each licenses has a different level of tools and security functionalities.  

 How many users do you have? Are you a non-profit, education, or government employee? If so, that will help guide on which group of licenses to choose from. 

Core Applications  

Identify the core applications your business relies on. M365 licenses offer different levels of access to applications such as Microsoft Office suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.), Exchange Online (email and calendar), SharePoint Online (document management and collaboration), and Teams (communication and collaboration). Also consider the policies and data privacy for what your are storing/sharing. You will want to ensure your M365 adheres.  

Advanced Features  

Do you require advanced features? Like advanced security, threat protection, data loss prevention, or information rights management? Some licenses offer additional advanced features beyond the basic productivity suite. 

Cloud Services

In addition to your license, Microsoft can do so much more! It can be come your Active Directory, and even manage your devices. It offers Microsoft Power Automate for workflow automation or Power BI for data visualization and reporting. These services may be included or available as add-ons in certain M365 licenses. It just depends on if you need them or not. 

Compliance and Governance

Does your organization have compliance and governance requirements? Do you operate in a regulated industry. Some licenses provide enhanced compliance features. They include things like eDiscovery capabilities, data retention policies, and legal hold functionalities. 

Cost Considerations

There is always a balance between cost and functionality. You know your business. It may be worth mixing and matching based on the user-roles. Compare value versus features.  

Microsoft is always adding new features. Unless you live it everyday, it is challenging to keep up or understand what all the services actually do! Let our Microsoft IT Experts guide you through the options to choose what is best for you!